What should I upgrade? (SSD or CPU)

[fai ip]

I want to upgrade for better experience on open-world games.
I prefer to get a ssd or an i7,but I don't know what should I upgrade first because I don't have enough bucks.......
Plz help!

My spec:
i5 4440
zotac gtx 970
WD 1TB Blue
Gigabyte H81M-HD3

 

[Archgaull]

Most definitely get a SSD. It'll help greatly with load times.

 

[kwa-e]

Definitely the SSD,

Buying a new processor will only give you a small amount of performance over the i5 at an extremely high cost, Waste of money really.

 

[fai ip]

But I have serious stuttering in witcher 3 because of my low cpu clock speed

 

[kwa-e]

How much RAM do you have?

Do you have the latest drivers?

Do you run regular AV scans?

 

[fai ip]

8 gb ram

 

[st3v30]

Maybe you are getting stutters cuz of Motherboard overheating.That mobo doesn't have any heatsinks and one on intel board can get rly hot.
So maybe get SSD and new mobo.
Good and cheap

https://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-motherboard-b85mgaming

IF you want to spend a bit more and have option to later on upgrade to better CPU from intel 5th gen

https://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz97mxgaming5

 

[smangione]

Check your ram usage when you're playing The Witcher 3. I highly doubt your hard drive is the problem for your stuttering issues. Also check your cup usage. Temps etc. Then report back here

 

[fai ip]

My cpu usage in witcher 3 in towns is 90-100%......
In the rural area,my usage is just 70-80%

 

[smangione]

Don't just check cpu check gpu as well frame rates what settings are you at your temps everything

 

[fai ip]

Ultra setting and my gpu stays on 72C.

 

[smangione]

If you lower the settings does the stuttering still appear?

 

[fai ip]

Yes,I think my cpu is not powerful enough to play this game

 

[st3v30]

Your CPU is fine.
Take a look at this test.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rutk9ErhKG4

Most of the fighting is out of the town so there you should be fine with higher FPS.

 

[fai ip]

I have stable 50-60 fps,but when my cpu usage goes to 100%,the stuttering happens.The stuttering is really annoying.

 

[kwa-e]

What GHZ is your i5 running at when the CPU usage is on full?

Could be a case of throttling

 

[fai ip]

3.3ghz turbo speed and 3.1ghz clock speed

 

[Zircoben]

Hmm what monitor resolution are you at?

 

[fai ip]

1080p

 

[Zircoben]

An i5-4440 should have NO issues powering a GTX 970, I can only think of any issues happening if you were in an SLI (2 970's).

I also can't see the hard drive being an issue, games primarily use the hard drive when loading up the game, not while gaming.

I'd uninstall and reinstall current drivers and check GPU and CPU temperatures in HWMonitor.

 

[kwa-e]

Even in SLI the 4440 is enough.

Even @4K the 4440 is enough, as long as you have the right GPU setup.

And yeah, a fresh install is a good idea.

Download and run this DDU after booting into safe mode.
http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/display-driver-uninstaller-download.html

And install a fresh copy of the drivers afterwards.